DOE Funds Gigantic Solar Plant

01/07/2011 |

The DOE has announced the finalization of plans for a $1.45 billion loan towards an Abengoa Solar Inc. solar plant project near Gila Bend, AZ.

The 250-megawatt renewable energy project is believed to be the world’s largest parabolic trough concentrating solar plant, and the first large-scaled U.S. effort at a plant capable of storing the energy it generates.

As the world's largest solar plant of its kind, the Abengoa's Solana project is playing an important role in creating jobs and clean energy for Arizona as well as fostering innovation in the U.S.," says U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu. "As today's announcement and other recent announcements of completed loan guarantees for wind and solar projects demonstrate, the Department's loan program is gaining momentum, creating jobs in communities across the country while putting us on the path to a clean energy future."

The Solana solar plant project is expected to produce enough energy to service 70,000 homes while avoiding 475,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually compared to a natural gas plant.

The Solana solar plant project is also anticipated to create up to 1,700 new construction jobs.